image belowThe Value and Benefit of this ResourceWe are now in the age of visual information where visual content plays a role in every part of life. A large proportion of the population are visual learners, images are clearly key to engaging people in Learning. Visual Learning engages the use of visual tools such as computers, tablets, mobile phones, television and video to support educational content and to allow a greater understanding.

The Cross Curriculum Link allows a student to discover that another subject area, which is not one of their favourites, has a beneficial link to support a subject that they really enjoy. It greatly benefits and enhances the learning process as interactive effects are used to reinforce the material being studied. Visual learning is a great way to encourage a learner’s interest in a number of subjects and makes learning more exciting and enjoyable. By using a Smart Multimedia Library the User can easily revisit a group of videos to refresh their knowledge and maintain their interest for longer periods.

Time is a key element and should a student need more time to fully understand the topic then by having the visual learning clip in their own Private & Secure Smart Multimedia Library, they can return to the clip in their own time, to further improve their knowledge. Visual learning is a fun way to learn, the class will find it easier to discuss the topic, and the clip can be replayed, paused so an element can be discussed in more detail. The class will retain more information through visual learning.

People sometimes deny the essential value of visual learning. But they will turn immediately to video, television and computers (Google), to seek more information about a subject of interest. Please see image below.

All children have different learning styles and their own preferred ways of processing information. Written material and the use of textbooks, for many children, is similar to expecting them to learn another language before being able to engage in the learning process. Yet so much of teaching remains heavily reliant on presenting content primarily through verbal cues such as written or spoken words. So if they are forced to use only text as the way to learn, it is hardly surprising that so many children fail to achieve what is often expected of them. Visual Learning is the single most effective way to overcome this problem.

Visual Learning will provide significant cost-savings in education. This is because a topic can be taught effectively to large numbers of people without the need of buying expensive equipment. Using video for example, a topic can be broken down into manageable pieces, enabling students to better absorb the information.

Both the short-term and long-term memory store information in chunks, but the former is limited. One of the easiest ways to ensure that learners store information in their long-term memory is to pair concepts with meaningful images. Research has found that this tactic increases recall better than when courses deliver information through aural or textual form.

Research to support the use of specific teaching and learning techniques has long been a key part of every educator's decision-making process. Visual learning techniques are used widely in schools across the country to accomplish curriculum goals and improve student performance.

Learn Quicker - People process visual information more efficiently than text - Just see it for yourself: at the foot of this article

Research has clearly shown that visual learning techniques will improve student learning and performance in the following areas:

Reading Comprehension

Student Achievement and Assessment

Thinking and Learning Skills such as Organizing and Communicating

Long Term Retention

Visual Learning supports implementation of Cognitive Learning

- Visuals cause a faster and stronger reaction than words. They help users engage with the content and such emotional reactions influence information retention. This is because the visual memory is encoded in the medial temporal lobe of the brain, the same place where emotions are processed. The brain is set up in a way that visual stimuli and emotional response is easily linked and together the two form memories.

Without the greater use of visual learning in schools and other places of learning, many students are not gaining the maximum benefit due to students’ learning styles. There is every reason to believe therefore that because such a large proportion of students learn better from visual learning, an improved balance between verbal and visual techniques would produce significantly improved learning outcomes and benefits for thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of children and students.

Contact: If you would like to discuss this important topic in more detail please give us a call on 0333 123 2020 or email ken@visuallearning.co.uk

The Power of Visual Learning - Written by Ken Caudrelier – Founder of The Visual Learning Company Ltd